Some Thoughts
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The Baffling, Years-Long Beef Between Kyrie Irving and NBA Media, Explained
When it’s a sport’s offseason and an athlete’s name trends as often as Kyrie Irving’s does—well, an athlete not named LeBron James—it’s usually because of an injury, a trade, or perhaps even some legal issue. Kyrie, however, seems to always be in the news because of…a podcast and a couple of creatively punctuated pre-written statements…
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Euphoria and Colman Domingo Delivered the Best Phone Call Scene I've Ever Seen, and I Still Can't Get It Out of My Head
So, during my conversation with Ta-Nehisi Coates earlier this week, he mentioned that he wants his work to “haunt” those who read it, where (paraphrasing) it sticks in their heads and they can’t extract it. I’ve had similar conversations with other writers—and others across the creative spectrum—and this feeling is universal among them. Us, I…
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A Short Blog About a Confused Dipshit in My Neighborhood With Trump Flags in Their Windows
In 2004, City of Asylum/Pittsburgh opened its doors on Sampsonia Way in Pittsburgh’s Northside neighborhood with a specific mission: to provide sanctuary to literary writers who were exiled and under threat of persecution. For two years we provide an exiled writer (and family) with a house, a stipend, and medical benefits, as well as a…
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20 Spoiler-Filled Questions After Finally Watching HBO's The Undoing
I watched HBO’s The Undoing, and I have questions. 1. Why would he try to burn the murder thing in a janky outdoor fire pit when the whole ass ocean is literally right there? 2. Do rich whites (“the wich”) just not have ceilings in their homes? 3. Is there a ceiling-less house level of…
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My Chaotic and COVID-Influenced 2020 Spotify Wrapped, Explained
Soooo… Yeah? Are we ready to talk about this list? I think so. I think I’m ready. Let’s start at the top, then. James Blake has pretty much cemented his status as the Blacks’ favorite contemporary white in music. This is true. The Blacks love James Blake, and I am a Black. I like him…
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So I Watched the 'Y'all Can't Twerk in Here' Video Again, and That Guy's Short-Sleeved Turtleneck Still Makes No Sense
It is below freezing in Pittsburgh today, with wind chills in the teens. I’ve spent much of the day indoors, shielded from the weather and protected by the central heating in our house, but inside still feels the effects of the cold. Sitting next to a window, for instance, feels like sitting next to a…
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This Holiday Season, Be Thankful You're Not Jason Whitlock
“It could be worse” seems to have overtaken the many versions of “I’m fine” on the list of the most common responses to “How are you doing?” Understandable, considering that we’re in a global pandemic and just responding with “I’m fine” feels both disingenuous and insensitive. But while “It could be worse” is sufficiently sober,…
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My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Was the Greatest Rap Album of the 21st Century, and Kanye Never Recovered From It
A funny thing about My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy when compared to the other rap albums that exist in the space where “iconic album” and “album I happen to love” overlap is that I don’t remember where or when I first heard it. I could tell you where I was when I first heard Wu-Forever…
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Unpopular Opinion: Turkey Is Good
I hadn’t realized exactly how thoroughly I’d been influenced by the onslaught of anti-turkey propaganda until making a Thanksgiving shopping list with my wife this morning. (It is weird that we’re still planning to purchase and cook a sailor’s buffet of food despite the fact that no one will be in our house except for…
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For White Men Who Have Considered Genocide When Patriarchy and Privilege Are Not Enuf
The cacophony of celebratory sounds that rang out last week in reaction to Joe Biden’s win was based on a sundry of emotions—ranging from relief at ending a racist regime dominated by white men who were fanatical about protecting their own wealth and privilege to jubilance over a historic win for Kamala Harris, the first woman…